Open High School Sydney

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Open High School
"Excellence in the teaching and learning of languages by distance education"
Established 1991
School type Public
Principal/
Headmaster		 Mr Stephen Murray
Location Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Campus Urban
Enrolment 1988
School colours Blue, White
Homepage http://www.theopenhs-d.schools.nsw.edu.au/
Main Building
Main Building

Contents

[edit] History

Open High School is part of the New South Wales Department of Education and Training. In 1991 The New South Wales Correspondence School, which catered for preschool to Year 12 students, was decentralised into 19 Distance Education Centres located in schools across the state.

At this time the Learning Materials Production Centre was formed to produce learning materials for all these centres and the Open High School was established.

Enrolment is available to students currently enrolled in secondary or central schools, both government and non-government, located in New South Wales or approved ACT or PNG secondary or central schools.

The main purposes of the school are to assist students to:

  • extend their curriculum options
  • maintain continuity of study, e.g. when transferring between schools

To enrol, students must satisfy published enrolment criteria, e.g. study of family language. The maximum enrolments from schools are determined by a quota system; e.g. a school with 600 students is allowed up to six new distance education enrolments each year.

Currently courses are offered at School Certificate and Higher School Certificate levels in the following languages:

  • Chinese
  • French
  • German
  • Indonesian
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Korean
  • Latin
  • Modern Greek
  • Russian
  • Spanish

Open High School operates in a distance education mode with students and teachers rarely being together in the same place. Teachers provide students with distance education learning experiences which are designed to meet their individual needs. Some of the strategies employed involve the use of:

  • printed materials
  • audio cassette tapes
  • CD ROMs
  • DVD materials
  • telephone lessons
  • face-to-face individual and group lessons
  • computer-assisted communication
  • internet-based exercises

[edit] Achievements

The Open High School has a history of high achievement by students sitting HSC examinations. In the 2004 HSC examinations students have achieved outstanding results. Of the 622 students who sat the examination, a third achieved marks in Band 6 Continuers and Beginners Levels, and in Band 4 in Extension Level. These bands represent the highest bands that can be awarded in the different courses.

Open High School students achieved first place in the state in each of the following languages:

  • French Beginners
  • French Continuers
  • Indonesian Background Speakers
  • Indonesian Continuers
  • Korean Continuers
  • Modern Greek Beginners
  • Modern Greek Continuers
  • Modern Greek Extension
  • Spanish Beginners

We believe that, as well as producing excellent learning outcomes, Distance Education equips students with the skills and independence necessary to become life-long learners.

Location Map
Location Map

[edit] Location

Open High School is located at 78 Avoca St in the suburb of Randwick in Sydney's east. Click on the map to the right to see a larger version of it. The entrance to the Open High School is in Avoca Street. If you are attending a face-to-face lesson, proceed to the main quadrangle behind the cream Administration Building and wait for your teacher. To get to our campus, take any of the following buses:

  • From Central Railway Station (Eddy Avenue): 372, 374, 376. Alight at the corner of Cook and Frances Street (this trip takes on average 30 minutes)
  • From Bondi Junction Station (Bus interchange): 313, 314, 316, 317 (Stand J); 357, 359 (Stand K); 400, 410 (Stand E). Alight at the corner of Frenchmans Road and Avoca Street for all except 400 & 410. For 400 & 410 alight at corner of Cook & Frances Streets. (this trip takes on average 15 minutes)
  • From Circular Quay: 373, 374, 376, 377 (Stand D). Alight at the corner of Cook and Frances Street (this trip takes on average 45 minutes)

[edit] Enrolments

Open High School offers enrolment in the following languages:

  • Chinese
  • French
  • German
  • Indonesian
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Korean
  • Latin
  • Modern Greek
  • Russian
  • Spanish

Open High School caters for students in Years 9 to 12 who attend a Government or non-Government school which does not offer one of the above languages. For an application to be considered, students must be enrolled in a NSW, approved ACT or PNG secondary or central school.

All applications for enrolment at the Open High School must be made through your own school Principal and must meet certain enrolment criteria established by the Department of Education and Training. These criteria are published in the Guidelines for Enrolment in Distance Education. Some of these criteria are also detailed in the Open High School Enrolment Application form which you can download from our website.

Students, or parents of students wishing to enrol, should approach their School Principal or the Open High School Supervisor at their school, or alternatively, visit the Enrolment Info section of our website to learn more.